A long-awaited Department of Defense review has determined that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth violated official protocols by disclosing secret information in a private Signal group, according to a person briefed on the findings.
Details of the Incident
The chat group in dispute included details about a scheduled airstrike in Yemen against Houthi fighters. This discussion came to light after a journalist for the Atlantic was added as a participant.
Other officials in the group reportedly included JD Vance, CIA director John Ratcliffe, and former security advisor Mike Waltz. The report did not examine the actions of Hegseth, as the other participants are not employed at the Pentagon.
Signal is a publicly available messaging app that was not authorized for handling sensitive material.
Serious Risk to Forces
The internal investigation determined that the intelligence shared by Hegseth was secret and posed a risk to the safety of US service members if it had been intercepted by a foreign enemy force.
However, the document acknowledged that Hegseth had the ability to declassify the material he shared, though it was unclear whether he formally did so.
Hegseth's Response
The source indicated that Hegseth refused to be interviewed by the inspector general. Instead, he submitted a brief written statement.
In his statement, Hegseth claimed he only shared details that would not have risked lives or jeopardized the operation. He further stated that he possessed the authority to downgrade information and viewed the inspector general to be politically motivated.
Next Steps
The finalized investigation has been shared with Congress. An publicly releasable copy is expected to be released in the coming days.
